The .45 GAP Cartridge

[tptplayer]

I personally wouldn't buy a handgun in .45 GAP right now but it is way too early to dismiss it. More and more ammunition makers and gun manufacturers are jumping on the bandwagon.

The point that DA is making may be answered when the CorBon markets their version of the GAP.

Here is an interesting web page comparing the .45 ACP and the .45 GAP and some quotes.

mywebpages.comcast.net/petej/compare.45acp.45gap.htm

"In the near future we will be able to compare +P .45 ACP ammo against the hottest .45 GAP ammo made by Cor-Bon (another kind of apples and apples). I predict that when this comparison becomes public, there won’t be a huge difference between the two calibers."


To Summarize the Main Reasons for the New .45 GAP Caliber

· To propel the same .45 bullets as the .45 ACP at the same general velocities and with the same inherent accuracy as the .45 ACP.
· To use a shorter, more efficient .45 cartridge in order to pack 10 + 1 into a mid size pistol frame which has a short trigger reach to accommodate all hand sizes (Glock 21: grip too big; USP45: trigger reach too long; Glock 37: just right).
· To allow other manufacturers to quickly convert their .40 based auto pistols into safer .45 GAP pistols with low R&D costs.
· To allow revolver manufacturers to easily enter the .45 GAP market just as the .45 ACP has already done so.
· To take advantage of the new 45 GAP cartridge that was engineered to function reliably and safely in unsupported chambers, with a “healthy pressure buffer built into the beefed up case” to better handle out of spec ammo and/or pistols.
· To take advantage of the .45 GAP costing less than the .45 ACP to produce and load: less powder to do the same thing as the acp, small pistol primers, and a shorter case saves on unneeded case metal.
· To take advantage of the short .45 GAP cartridge that can go through the feed, extract, and ejection cycle faster than a long cased cartridge.
· In a nutshell, the 45 GAP cartridge is an excellent fit in performance, pistol size, cartridge size, and beefed up case strength, for those that use Glocks which is about 75% of the Law Enforcement Market, and for other companies who wish to compete with Glock.

[Mikolev]

Mikolev; Did the Shooting Times article compare the .45GAP to the .45ACP in +P hollow points?

I don't think so. As I remember, most of the comparison was done using Lawman brand (which I think is made by Speer). But I havn't seen any Lawman ammo in +P Hollowpoint. So, this being said, the true defensive rounds probably havn't been juxtaposed yet.

I personally want to know how sales of the Glock 37 have been. The gun store near me says they've sold very few, which is what I'm hearing from other places I visit also. It may be too early to tell if this will catch on, but if I knew that the .45GAP would have a respectable market share, or at least solidified it's position in the world of handguns, I'de at least consider buying one in the future ; I simply don't feel comfortable with it's future yet.

[papercutter]

Here is a good link, looks like the case length is the same as a 9 mm, to make it possible to retro fit "some" 9 mm pistols with barrel & magazine conversions. The case is thicker / stronger to seat bullets without a bulge and take the extra pressure, as mentioned before.

They list 185 and 200 gr bullets , No 230 gr ,,,, even at these spec,s a safe handloader can beat that performance.


www.speer-bullets.com/pdf/45GAP%20Tech%20Brief_150dpi.pdf

[Callahan]

The new issue of the NRA's "American Riflemen" went bananas over the .45 GAP. Big article on Springfield offering that caliber in their XD line plus an article on the Glock 37 in .45 GAP. A third article comparing the .45 ACP and the .45 GAP. Big news there was the wizards at Winchester have managed to come up a round that supposedly wasn't possible, a classic 230-grain cartridge in .45 GAP that compare well, even exceeds the .45 ACP.

With two big gunmakers offering the .45 GAP (Glock and Springfield) and with a load that compares favorably with the .45 ACP, that means you can buy a concealable pistol in a proven stopping caliber. This may spell trouble for the .40 S&W if this keeps up.

[TBT]

There is just something about this GAP round that I can’t warm up to. Maybe it is because they keep comparing it to the 45ACP round and I am pretty much a diehard there.

Maybe it is just the name. That is a lame name for a round. Doesn’t sound “mean” lol.

[tptplayer]

I definitely think the .45 GAP is a good cartridge. I plan on getting a handgun shooting it after I get another .45 ACP (1911), a .357 magnum, a single action .45 long Colt and maybe a Glock Model 34. If it is still around.